Germany: Berlin grapples with diverging pressures on migration policy

Featured image of the article Germany: Berlin grapples with diverging pressures on migration policy
Under pressure from the electoral success of the far right, Germany is continuing to roll out an increasingly restrictive migration policy, to the point of reintroducing controls at all its land borders on Monday. At the same time, the country is signing bilateral agreements for selective economic immigration.
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Why are border controls being extended? The Schengen area, within which people can travel without identity checks, allows for temporary controls to be introduced in the event of threats to public order or security. In 2015, Germany did so for its border with Austria because of the large influx of refugees. Then, from October 2023, the country introduced checks on its borders with Poland, the Czech Republic and Switzerland, and currently still has these in place on the border with France, due to

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